Negligence focuses on which concept?

• A. 'Foreseeable' dangers arising from a breach of duty of care.
• B. Property ownership and possession.
• C. Criminal procedure and punishment.
• D. International trade regulations.

Answer: (A)

Negligence is all about carelessness that could cause harm, focusing on whether the risk of harm was foreseeable and whether a duty of care was breached. In civil law, you look at whether someone owed a duty to another person, whether they failed to meet the standard of care, and whether that failure caused damage that was or could have been foreseen as a consequence. The idea is that people must take reasonable care to avoid foreseeable dangers to others; when that care is not taken, harm results and a negligence claim can arise. For example, if a store owner spills a slippery liquid and doesn’t warn customers or clean it up, the potential for a slip and fall is a foreseeable danger tied to breaching the duty to keep customers safe. The other topics—property ownership, criminal procedure, and international trade regulations—relate to different areas of law and don’t capture the civil duty-to-care and foreseeability focus that defines negligence.